Long hair

Hair care can be an arduous task and to be honest most time I’m too lazy to (hair) care. (;
So, when my normal routine can do all the work for me, I’m probably a little bit too excited.

I like to keep my hair low maintenance, so why I decided to ‘go blonde’ is beyond me. Any brunette to blonde will tell you, its an expensive rode to walk down to hair that is undeniably going to turn to straw if you don’t care for it. That, or just snap off…

So when I had my first round of bleaching I knew I had to get in on some hair care ASAP! thank goodness for Priceline, their hair care sale was just a few days after my appointment so I picked up some products that I’m going to share with you because, as luck would have it the Priceline hair care sale is happening this week: Thursday the 12th and Friday the 13th (oooohhh) of October.

The first products I added into my hair care regime were the ‘Sheer Blonde Colour Renew Tone-Correcting shampoo and conditioner by John Frieda. As you can see by the less than pristine packaging I used them all up! I really enjoyed this product and in fact I went to re purchase it but it was sold out of either the shampoo or the conditioner and I like using them as a set so I picked up something else instead.

Brass be gone: I found it knocked back the brassy tones that were showing through. I used this shampoo and conditioner 1 to 2 times a week and it kept my hair looking yellow blonde instead of orange blonde which I really liked.

Price: $17.99 each per 250ml – full price

Smell: Not that many will care, but this shampoo and conditioner smell so nice and leave the hair smelling so for at least two days afterwards.

Aftermath: The conditioner does a really nice job at eliminating breakages AND detangling. Because my hair is naturally fine, long and curly/wavy tangles are a constant which mean hair breakage and split ends are a daily struggle. This conditioner once massaged into the lengths of my hair made it easy to brush out. Hair felt silky and smooth for days.

When I went in to purchase the John Frieda again and saw that one was sold out, I came across the Fudge version. It’s the Fudge Clean Blonde Violet Toning Shampoo and Conditioner. Clean blonde… is that a play on words of dirty blonde? I don’t know, but it’s clever. It was slightly more expensive than the John Frieda, but there is more product so I thought, “eh, why not. People have recommended Fudge products in the past.. I’ll give it a go”. I’ll say it now. I really like this duo.

Brass be gone: Wow, this sometimes works too well! I have almost white blonde ends and if I use too much of this I feel like they go grey/silver/purple. I don’t hate it but just be warned. A little goes a long way. Apply it to hands and work through the lengths of your hair don’t apply straight to hair.

Price: $21.99 each per 300ml – full price

Smell: It smells sweet, like confectionary. Almost like lolly bananas? Totally odd but not at all unpleasant. It has a powdery sweet linger to the hair.

Aftermath: Apart from the possible purple ends, this duo does a great job at keeping the brass at bay. My hair tends to get a little bit fluffy if I leave it to air dry after washing, but my hair does feel very soft. I think it would work well on thicker hair that doesn’t tend to fly around like my fine hair does.

A word of caution. As you will see in a photo below, the shampoo is quite purple. I found once I’d finished in the shower there were purple toned water drops everywhere and I was worried it’d staid the grout in the tiles. (Raise your hand if you’re pedantic about tile grout 🙋🏻) it does however wash away easily.

Another note about staining, my fingernails are a violet colour. Especially around the cuticles. For a week I didn’t know how it had t washed off and then I realised it must have stained the roots / my scalp because every time I’d run my fingers through my roots or scratch my head my nails would be purple again so make sure you wash this product out super well. I’ve never had an issue with any other violet shampoo before. Just this one.

Once every one to two weeks I like to treat myself to a hair mask. My hair is naturally quite fine and dry and b cause of that, prone to breakage so I like to give it a boost every now and then. I’ve been using the Masque brand for a while and I’ve tried out 3 of their other masks and really enjoy them. Out of a packet this size I get at least 6 treatments.

Because I use purple shampoo and conditioner intermittently with my regular shampoo and conditioner I sometimes like to let this mask soak in and act as a deep conditioning toner treatment and I find it works quite well.

Brass be gone: I feel like it’s at the same level as the John Frieda. But because I can leave this on longer. It varies. Sometimes I mix in a tiny amount of the Fudge shampoo for a bigger kick.

Aftermath: No staining so that’s a plus. Hair is hydrated and smooth and has a decent amount of the brass kicked back. Hair smells nice and is super soft.

Here you can see the different variations of purple. In my mind the darker the colour the stronger the affect. Left to right is John Frieda, Fudge and Masque. This is only the shampoo (obviously the Masque is just the Masque) the conditioner of both are much more pale in colour.

You can see that the J/F is much more runny than the other two, and also the lightest. That being said I’d still use it again. The other two are quite thick. These swatches were on my hand for 5 mins maximum and the middle one (Fudge) did stain slightly.

After all is said and done, I’d still use any of these products again and I recommend you try them if you’re in the market from some purple shampoo. Just pay close attention when using the Fudge!

You may remember a few weeks ago, I posted about the possibility of chopping of all my hair. “Getting the chop?“

Well, one lazy afternoon and a spur of the moment decision – along with a friend to hold my hand – had me walking into a salon. Thanks Lucy for being my chauffeur and convincing me that this is what I wanted. ❤

Before:

I was letting my friends know I was about to get the chop and tried telling them where I wanted it cut to. Or maybe I just wanted some last photos of my long locks. But lets be real, it needed to be cut anyway, after years of bleach and heat treatment my ends were literally fried.

The Inspiration:

In the previous post about me thinking about getting my hair cut, I toyed with the idea of one of these super ‘on trend’ long bobs. I basically needed that much cut off anyway for my hair to be healthy again, and had somewhat decided to get rid of all the blonde anyway, so why not? As soon as I saw these images of Melissa McCarthy I knew this is what I wanted. I was worried that a short cut like this would show off features of my face that I’m not quite comfortable with. I used my long hair to hide being. But seeing these images made me want this hair so bad! I took this image into the salon and asked for it to be a little bit longer, it turned out a little bit shorter but oh well, hair grows.

The Length:

I went in with hair approx 22″ and came out with a somewhat A-Symetrical bob. Longer in the front and shorter in the back – only by an inch or two. My hair is now 10/11″ at the back and 12″ in the front. I’ve had my hair cut like this before, so its not new to me.

None of my friends have seen me with short hair, the last time I got it this short was in the early years of high school, I was a little nervous. I’ve also not been all one colour for a while. I love my natural colour which is why I’ve never died the roots. I’m happy to be a full brunette again and to have healthy hair. However, I am a little sad to no longer be ‘the girl with the long hair’. It sounds silly but I got a lot of compliments on my hair from friends, and even strangers. It felt nice. But, it will grow back so – I’m ok with this.

The Process:
I walked into the salon and didn’t have to wait at all as it was the end of the day and a lot of free chairs. I sat down and explained what I want and the stylist quickly went to work. I was getting a lot of attention from the other staff who were working. A lot of ‘oooh-ing and aahh-ing’ was happening. It was all positive and they only had nice words to say, but I felt a little bit like a gold fish being stared at.

After:

Image one is just after it was cut. Lucy and I went to pick up a celebratory bottle of wine, plus I think I might have been in shock a little bit – it sounds silly.

Image two is once I’d washed, blowdried and lightly straightened my hair. Its so soft and strong now. I’m so happy with it.

Image three is today. The expression is weird because public transport selfies are hard. I threw in some loose curls to add texture without it being puffy. I have noticed that I will have to change little things about how I do my makeup because my hair isn’t there to hide anything and also having my face more open has given me ideas for more makeup looks. Something to go with my all brown hair. I’m excited to experiment!

Before and After:

I really am happy with the result, even though it is shorter than expected. But I don’t mind, I’m so blasé about it and I know hair grows back so I’ll just have to deal with it being a little bit shorter for a while. I’m excited to style it and find new things that I can do with these newly chopped locks! Be on the look out for some hair style posts coming up!

Have you ever made the change? Traded in your long locks for a bouncy bob? I’d love to know what products you use for styling or any tips on how I can style my new hair!

It’s come to my attention that every so often (every 10 or so years per se) I get bored with my long (long, long, long) hair and get it chopped off! The first (and only other time) I did this I was in high school and went from about 28″ to 10″ and absolutely loved it.

I saved my mother a tonne in shampoo and conditioner money and was able to do styles I’d never done before. So I think its about time I get it done again. HOWEVER I don’t trust anyone with my hair haha. Story of my life, right?

So this is where my hair is currently:

Excuse the Mirror selfie

Because its all pulled to one side it looks a little bit shorter than it actually is but you get the idea!

And this is what I’m wanting to get done.

I am loving this ‘long’ bob/medium length textured style of hair. Lots of texture and layers with a blunt cut. Hopefully by chopping off half of my hair it’ll be nice and healthy once again. (2 and a half years of bleaching it can’t be great, am I right?) I really like the look of the balayage highlights etc put through it, I’m not sure if I’ll get it all done in one sitting, because A) time and B) money. But we’ll see! It really isn’t that much hair gone, but it will feel like I’m bald, I’m sure. I feel that way after a little trim!

Hopefully by me putting it in writing and out on the internet it’ll persuade me to actually get it done! So, wish me luck?

Any long haired ladies out there who’ve gotten the chop? I’d love to know your feelings about it!

I’ve had ombré hair for a while now, and that was a huge step for me in the fact that I don’t usually colour or do anything with my hair, despite wanting to. So since its fairly blonde for the majority, I thought I would spice it up with a bit of colour, this is temporary and lasts anywhere from 3 – 30 washes. I did this all myself and I’m really happy with how it all turned out. If you’re interested in knowing what I did. Keep reading.

The Product:

Here is the dye I used. They’re both by the brand ‘Fudge’ and they’re the ‘Paint Box’ colour dyes.They have a HUGE selection of colours and you can find them, here. The colours I used are Red Corvette and Blueberry Hill. I mixed the red with some conditioner to make it less intense as I didn’t have an actual pink colour.

I also have some hair separating clips (these are TONY&GUY) a comb, Gloves and an old t-shirt.

Before:

This is my ‘Before’ picture. There is no product in my hair, this is just how it is naturally. It doesn’t matter if you have anything in your hair because step one is to shampoo it. The instructions I’m following are from the back of the tubes of dye.

Step One: Brush and Shampoo.

Shampoo your hair to get out any product and to make sure you have a nice clean canvas to work with, then towel dry. The hair needs to be wet/damp for the dye to develop. I separated my hair into two layers, I clipped the top layer u and out of the way.

Step Two: Apply the dye.

Though I seem to have quite a lot of hair, its actually quite thin and fine, so I don’t need a lot of dye, I started out by squeezing about the size of a

marble into my gloves and then worked that into the selected hair. I made sure to totally saturate the ends with dye and hve it slightly uneven as it blended into my natural hair, basically following my ombré, I didn’t want just a straight line of colour.

When you have all the hair covered in dye, let down the other layer and keep them slightly separate, I personally didn’t mind if the colours ‘bled’ together a little bit because I like that effect, however if you want clear

defined colours, wrap them in plastic wrap and clip out of the way.

Step Three: Processing

Apply the second colour of dye, I triple checked that I had all the blonde I wanted covered. I left just a small
amount blonde where so it doesn’t look like such a harsh transition. I let both of the dyes touch each other during the processing stage. If you don’t want them to touch
wrap them in plastic wrap and clip out of the way, or use plastic freezer bags, just slide your hair in, tie up with clear elastic and then clip up. Its a lot cleaner. Plastic can help with the processing. Leave colour on hair for 15 – 30 minutes. Rinse out until water runs clear and then condition your hair asusual.

Lustrum. For these curls I used the tapered wand (the one that looks triangular). I
was so happy with how the colours came out and how the transition from my natural dark brown hair, to the small amount of honey blonde, into the pink/red and down into the purple.

Close up of curls/colours.

Here you can see the colours blending into one another and looking vibrant. Because the red was ‘watered down’ with conditioner, it came out pinky / strawberry blonde which I’m very happy with. The colour may was out quicker thought because it wasn’t 100% dye. If you’re after a pink colour you should probably by the colour you want unless you don’t mind about early fading.